Twenty Two Years
by Lady Saffron of the Daggers
Summary: Oops, Jareth made a mistake.


**Disclaimer: **I do not own Labyrinth, but if I did I'm sure it would be stolen by some other fans on this site, for I am weak willed and easily overcome when threatened.

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The king stared at his subjects from his raised throne. A chicken squawked as a spit ball hit its head and many goblins laughed at its misfortune. He looked around the dirty room with a tired sigh. Arms wrapped around his neck and a head rested on his shoulder. "Happy anniversary," his wife whispered into his ear.

"Anniversary?" he asked in confusion, turning to the brunette woman. She appeared to only be twenty-five, and only the woman and he knew better. "My darling Sarah, our anniversary was twenty-one days ago. We celebrated by going to Crystaline Beach, remember?" he asked, gazing at the woman to see her reaction. "Please tell me that it was, in fact, you and not some woman that looked, smelt and acted very much like my wife," he said playfully worried.

"Of course that was me," Sarah said, lightly hitting his chest as she stood up straight. "I can't believe you couldn't remember this anniversary though," she stated angrily. Her feet stormed down the few steps to the main, dirty floor. She managed to step on a passing goblins' foot and would've lost her balance if not for her hand falling on the things dented helmet. "Come with me, oh great Goblin King," she ordered, not even bothering to apologize to the thick skinned creature. The man in question raised an eyebrow, but stood with little drama and followed her out to the main hallway where she gripped his hand and withdrew a crystal from his store of magic. She could perform no true magic without his help. She needed a focus, yet her life being spent mortal Aboveground made it impossible for her to gain one, so he allowed her to use his whenever she needed.

Her free hand grabbed his tightly as she closed her eyes to focus on the location she would send them to. Jareth looked at her, having trouble holding back the urge to cup her cheek in his gloved hand. When he looked around next he discovered them both on a dirt hill, next to a dead tree. Tumbleweed blew down the hill on the slight wind and Sarah stepped close to him, turning around to lean her back against his chest. His arms encircled her as he gazed out at his lands. "Is that the castle beyond the Goblin City?" Sarah whispered.

Jareth's eyes gazed lovingly upon his lands and his hold on her tightened almost imperceptibly. "Turn back Sarah, turn back before it's too late." His voice was much kinder than it had been when they had first played this part out; than when he had been the antagonist of her fairy tale.

"It already is, and there are few regrets," Sarah told him, turning in his arms to see his face. "Twenty-two years to the day and the thing I regret is simply that I have only spent twelve of them with you," the thirty-seven year old stated.

"Yes well, we still have forever," he said with a smile.

"Is it long enough?" the woman asked, a frown showing on her face.

"No, but we will make it the most wonderful eternity anyone else has ever lived. After all, mortals know how to live more than Fae," the basically immortal creature told her.

"Yes well, you'd better live up to your words, Goblin King, otherwise you'll have been beaten again, and I truthfully don't want a moping monarch on my hands. It was bad enough when you lost that game of jacks when facing the helping hands. I shiver to think of how you'll act should our lives not be the most thrilling lived by all Fae." His wife was joking, of course, and the man truly appreciated her humor, when it was not directed at him. Sarah tilted her head, studying his emotionless face before backing out of his arms and gripping his hand to drag him down the hill towards the gate. As she did so she pulled another crystal out of his stock. "Again, happy anniversary Jareth, and you'd better get started, for the center is farther than you think, and time is short," she told him teasingly while releasing him and backing away.

The man blinked and looked at her in confusion. "What do you mean?" he asked, looking around to realize that they were now before the gates. "Sarah?" he questioned, locking eyes with her. As soon as he did he noticed the mischievous glint in her eyes.

"You have thirteen hours in which to solve the Labyrinth or your bed will not be warmed for a week. Such a pity," she said, mocking him perfectly before she disappeared.

Jareth attempted to call a crystal to his aid, yet none appeared. The man moaned and shoved open the doors, he went to walk forward, certain his labyrinth would give him a straight path to the castle, yet he ended up walking face first into the wall. He thought of his wife's words before he decided that getting to the center in as little time as possible would be his best course of action. He ran, looking for opening and coming upon dead ends as though the labyrinth truly believed him to be a runner and not its king. He appeared at the castle doors with less than ten minutes to spare, tired out and hoping he could find his wife easily.

"Sarah, I have beaten the Labyrinth on foot, come and reward me with the prize I wish for!" he yelled up to the tower where she stood. "Honestly though, that was cruel, even for you. You needn't have landed me so close to the Bog," he stated up towards what the goblins believed to be the heavens, as there was no one in the window he was screaming at when they looked.

"No need to shout," a feminine voice said behind him. "You've learned your lesson and shall now never forget our meeting's date. I had hoped you wouldn't forget after twenty two years, but I guess that was too pricey of a wish. Congratulations, you win, barely," she said, kissing his cheek. "You are a very lucky man, husband mine," she told him.

"Yes, I realize that," he said. "I am reminded of how lucky I am every day when I wake and see your sleeping face trying to block the sunlight out with my arm," he told her, kissing her nose with a small smile.

"I told you that shades on the windows would be a wonderful gift any time of the year," she said angrily. "Why do you insist on not getting them?"

"How else would I wake up?" he asked, frowning in confusion.

"Well, you see, Aboveground people tend to use these new fangled things called alarm clocks," Sarah told him sarcastically.

"No," he said sternly.

"But."

"I will not allow one of those buzzing nightmares in our room," he said, remembering just in time to say 'our' instead of 'my.' If he had made that mistake his wife would have been very mad, and whether he had won or not, he would not have been allowed in his room for the night just so he could dwell on the thought of whose room it was. Sarah crossed her arms and pouted. "That will not work this time," he said, praying she would believe him, for, like any good husband, he truly would do whatever she asked if it were in reason, and an alarm clock was about as reasonable as one could get. Her eyes gazed up at him, begging to be allowed the small electronic device. "Maybe next year," he said with a sigh, knowing perfectly well that he would allow no such thing if he could help it. "Come, it's our anniversary, and we should celebrate it properly," he told her, wrapping an arm around her waist and leading her in to the castle towards where a prepared dinner waited.

Of course the King of the Goblins had not forgotten their anniversary, he had planned a wonderful evening for them, but it had been so wonderful to see her look of shock and anger when he had feigned ignorance. Oh how he enjoyed teasing his beautiful mortal turned Fae wife.

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**A/N:** Happy 22nd Anniversary Jareth, Sarah, Toby, Hoggle, Sir Didymus, Ludo, Ralph, Alph, helping hands, deaf doorknocker, "mute" doorknocker, little sidewalk goblin, Mr. and Mrs. Worm, fairy horde, junkyard people, lichen, False Alarms, Fireys, Mr. Mrs. and ex Mrs. Williams, Merlin, and all the other goblins and creatures that reside in the Labyrinth! Thank you Mr. Henson for creating such a magical movie that means so much to so many people.

Also, happy belated 16th Anniversary to David Bowie and Iman, which occurred on June 6th! I decided that Jareth and Sarah would have gotten married on their celebrated anniversary (since they have two.)


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